


Suspension

by Somewei



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Agni Kai, Atla season 3 finale, Best Friends, Canon Compliant, Character POV, F/M, Friendship, Gen, not quite love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-18
Updated: 2016-03-18
Packaged: 2018-05-27 11:05:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,041
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6282133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Somewei/pseuds/Somewei
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My heart dropped into my stomach as his body collapsed to the ground, the lightning disappearing into him. Zuko was not moving and could be dead. That was a heavy weight to carry.</p><p>(Katara witnesses Zuko's fall to Azula's lightning)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Suspension

The air was suspended.

Our breathing was hitched and I could tell that all three of us were holding it in – too scared to break the edge and tension of the Agni Kai. The stillness around us froze into place better than I could have ever done with my waterbending techniques. But I knew, deep down, that, should one of us move even in the slightest, something could go terribly wrong.

Zuko had asked me to stay out of this fight and I had been apprehensive since the moment he had bent down, his back turned to his sister, preparing to begin the firebender's duel. My hands had been sweaty from nerves as I watched the gold and blue flames dance around the two siblings and all I had wanted to do was jump in and help. It made me restless to watch Zuko and Azula throw attacks, knowing that any one of those flames could catch and break their footing.

It was practically sudden death and there was no way I could help. I'm not the type to sit down and play damsel in distress nor am I the type to let the man do all the work, but when he asked me to sit this one out two feelings had rushed through me: irritation and respect.

I had been irritated that Zuko had even bothered to ask me to come and then he pulls something like this. At first, I didn't understand it because, after all, even _he_ admitted to needing help defeating his sister. And then he goes and turns around and makes it between just _him_ and _her_ while _I_ sit out! I'll be honest when I say I was annoyed. But, at the same time, I respected him. I knew he needed to do this.

When he and I left to go find Yan Ra, he told Aang that I _needed_ that. That it was my form of closure. That seeing the man who killed my mother one last time would help me overcome the rage and turmoil that had been awoken in me. So, I was simply returning the favor to him. While Zuko had gotten closure over not needing his father's love, he had not received closure about his sister. She was still this looming darkness over his head that needed to be overcome. So, I let him have his Agni Kai without protest.

And I sat and watched with apprehension.

Then he did it. Then he taunted her about lightning. I knew he knew how to redirect it, but that still didn't stop me from becoming nervous. So many thoughts had rushed through my head as Azula's insane eyes twinkled and a cackle had filled the disturbed air.

_What would happen if he didn't redirect it? Would he live? Would he die?_

It disturbed me greatly and some part of me wished to tell Zuko to stop taunting her and to just continue with the fight – without the lightning. But, I was so caught up in the stillness of it, I couldn't open my mouth. We were all stuck in time. We were motionless as we watched Azula make her move. It was the deep breath before the plunge, the calm before the storm. And then she did it, but it went it a completely different direction than either Zuko and I had anticipated.

 _Me_.

My heart suddenly started pounding as I saw the blue and white electricity hurling towards me. My eyes widened and my mind begged my legs to run or my arms to bring out my water, but they wouldn't budge. I was stuck in shock as Azula flung lightning at me. I had been in the face of death plenty of times, but I had never been this close to actually _meeting_ it. So many memories had flashed through my mind. Some pleasant, some not so pleasant.

" _NO_!"

Zuko's voice broke me out of my stupor and I saw his body moving towards me. My eyes got wider with each step he took and I wanted to scream out to tell him to stop, to tell him to not waste his life on me. Iroh had been right; we needed him. We needed Zuko to help Aang restore the Fire Nation back to its way of peace, but he was throwing it away by _saving_ me…and I had been too late.

My heart throbbed and then dropped into my stomach as his body collapsed to the ground. The lightning disappeared within him and fear seeped into my very veins. He didn't move and he didn't get up.

_Idiot! Why hadn't he redirected the lightening! Why hadn't he just grab me like when the ceiling was crashing above me in the temple? Why had he put himself in danger for me?!_

Zuko was not moving and Azula was cackling gleefully. Pain had etched its way into my body.

My enemy was not moving. My rival was not moving. The Fire Prince was not moving. The stubborn jerk was not moving. The hothead was not moving. Aang's teacher was not moving. Sokka's companion was not moving. Toph's teasing dummy was not moving. Suki's acquaintance was not moving. Zuko was not moving.

 _My best friend was not moving_.

My breath caught in my throat at the realization. He, my enemy and rival, the one who had plagued my dreams and nightmares, was my best friend. I hadn't even realized this until he had shoved himself in front of me. The responsibility of my best friend possibly being dead was far heavier than thinking the Fire Prince possibly being dead. In fact, it made it so much worse.

" _Zuko_!"

I moved towards him, my water already out to heal him and to fight to keep him alive, but Azula was far quicker. She had shot lightning at my feet, preventing me from getting to him. I froze, still scared that I had lost him. I knew, even after all the anger and hurt I had felt from him, I would never forgive myself if he died today.

That's when I saw it.

He twitched.

He moved.

A slight smile curved its way on my face, relief washing over me.

 _He was alive_.


End file.
